Woman handcuffed and fined for riding escalator without holding handrail

‘It was horrible, disgusting behaviour,' transit rider says after she is detained by policeLES PERREAUXVideo Report HereA woman is outraged after she was handcuffed and ticketed for not holding the handrail on an escalator at the Montmorency metro station.

Bela Kosoian, a 38-year-old UQAM international law student, said she was on her way to class Wednesday, when she was stopped by Laval police.

"I was looking for money to buy metro tickets," said Kosoian.

Laval police Const. Nathalie Lorrain told CTV Montreal's Daniele Hamamdjian that Kosoian became aggressive when she was asked to hold the handrail.

"When they told her to be careful, she turned around and she started screaming at them, telling them she wouldn't use the rail," said Lorrain.

Lorrain added Kosoian was repeatedly warned that she would be given a ticket if she continued to resist holding onto the handrail.

"The police officers told me she probably had a bad day. She jumped in their faces right away," Lorrain said.

Kosoian countered it was never made clear that she was breaking any rules.

"They didn't tell me anything," she said.

When they reached the bottom of the escalator, she was taken into a detention room.

"I was always with handcuffs -- like a prisoner, like a criminal," said Kososian.

She was fined $420 -- $100 for not holding the banister, and $320 for obstruction.

STM bylaw

There are stickers posted on the escalators at metro stations indicating that commuters must hold the handrail.

An STM bylaw states: "It is forbidden for all persons to disobey a directive or a pictogram posted by the Société."

But the STM said Kosoian is the first person to be ticketed for riding the escalator without holding the rail.

These cops are sa ticking time bomb, this is not a question anymore of someone breaking the law or not ,this is ego show off at work. Cops in montreal ,laval will not be respected ,how on earth can you be respected , you intimidate to get respect ,but thats because you cops are intimidated thats why you act dumb, your quebec government has not tought you the right tools to be called officers like in other countries ,you are simply cops in quebec, but continue doing what u do and you will be shamed ,laugh and you will not be working again ,youl be in mcdonalds where your skills are more needed there then in the real world, has a matter a fact cops in quebec are not the good people ,the good people are the public ,cops are poor little kids who think they know it all ,im not saying that they are always wrong . BUT 95 PERCENT THEY ARE, SO LITTLE COPS OF QUEBEC ,DARE YOU TO CONTINUE DOING WHAT YOU DO , I WILL BE LAUGHING WITH THE PUBLIC BECAUSE NOT EVEN THE GOVERNMENT WILL DEFEND YOU ONCE WE BAN YOU FROM SOCIETY ,YOU WILL INDEED BE WORKING IN MCDONALDS ,THATS IF THEY HIRE YOU BECAUSE IF THEY FIND OUT U WERE A COP YUOL BE SENT HOME ,BEING A COP WILL BE LIKE HAVING A CRIMINAL RECORD SOON.

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